“I do think Carlos, Sascha, and Jannik Sinner have set themselves apart from the pack,” Andrea Petkovic, the former WTA pro, said at The Rennae Stubbs Tennis Podcast two days ago. Jannik Sinner started the year strong by winning the Australian Open and continued his dominance till the last grand slam of the year at the US Open. Whereas Alcaraz matched the levels by taking the major titles on clay and grass. And Zverev clinched the Italian Open title in May and was a runner-up at the French Open. As the upcoming season approaches, Daniil Medvedev‘s ex-coach, Ivan Pridankin, explained the difficulties with the Tops.

The season was not productive in terms of titles, but Daniil won a lot of ATP points, even without winning he played well in many important tournaments and finished the year in the top five – the words of Medvedev’s former coach -. If you look at those he lost against, it becomes clear: it is difficult for him to play against the top players,” said his ex-coach, as reported by the Italian publication Corriere dello Sport. “He approaches matches well that he has to win with a lot of confidence, but it was difficult for him with the leaders of the ranking. This is understandable and I think that next season will not be easier.” In what terms?

“Maybe even more difficult because he has problems at the level of the game that I, as a coach, would not really know how to solve”. Now the question is: Will Medvedev be able to compete with Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz ? “It will also be difficult to compete with Zverev” explained Pridankin. “And I do not see how this can be solved at the moment. His team is probably looking for ways to evolve. Staying at the level of fourth to tenth place is the most likely development”.

Medvedev finished the year with a remarkable 35-11 record but failed to secure any titles. Although he reached the finals at the Australian Open and Indian Wells, he still was unable to win crucial matches against players like Jannik Sinner (Australian Open final). Sinner defeated Medvedev 8 out of total 15 times, including in Grand Slam and Masters tournaments. This makes it clear that there are gaps in Medvedev’s gameplay against rising stars. Hence, he rated himself!

Daniil Medvedev rates himself a “six and a half out of 10”

Daniil Medvedev has openly admitted his shortcomings following a tough season which was capped off by a loss to Jannik Sinner at the ATP Finals. Sinner, the world number one, defeated Medvedev in straight sets, 6-3, 6-4, in their final group-stage match in Turin. The defeat meant Medvedev would end the year without a title for the first time since 2017. Reflecting on the season, Medvedev said, “I want to be number one in the world, but I didn’t play well enough this year, by far. Jannik is playing much better. He proved it many times.”

Medvedev nodded to the struggles he faced throughout 2024. Despite being ranked world number four, the Russian admitted that maintaining his level was a challenge. “I’m super proud about that because, as I said, especially in the end of the year, I struggled throughout the whole year. Every practice, every match was a struggle for me. Before, I would feel I had the edge on the opponent and win it easy. Now I needed to win three sets, tie-breaks, breaks in the end of the set,” he explained. Medvedev rated his season as a “six and a half out of 10,” recognizing that his performances fell below his own expectations.

Looking ahead, at 28, he remains determined to improve and adapt his game to compete with top players like Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz. “We’re going to try to really build something a little bit new. I see right now that it’s not good enough, especially against guys like Jannik and Carlos,” Medvedev said. He highlighted execution as a key area for improvement, adding, “If we talk purely tactics, I feel like I played fine. It’s just execution. That’s what we’re going to work on a lot in pre-season, to build a little bit better version of myself.”

As the upcoming season lies just within weeks of duration, it still remains to be seen if the Russian will be able to tackle the hassles.